New wheels for accident victim

RICHMOND HILL, ONT. – It only took a couple of weeks for Todd Jamison to go from crushed and blue to shiny and new.

Jamison, whose 2004 Hyundai Elantra GT was one of two vehicles crushed by a woman behind the wheel of a BMW in mid-October, was given a brand new 2010 Hyundai Elantra Touring GLS by the automaker yesterday.

The incident happened outside Extreme Fitness in Thornhill, Ont. Jamison works at the facility and came out to find his vehicle “a little flatter” than how he had left it.

Video surveillance caught the accident on tape, which became a web sensation garnering hundreds of thousands of views after Jamison posted it online. The video depicted a SUV pulling into an empty parking spot in front of Jamison’s vehicle when it jumped the small dividing curb and crushed the front end of the Elantra.

“We saw it on YouTube and thought, ‘Now there’s an opportunity to help out a customer,’” explained Hyundai representative Barb Pitblado. “It was our random act of kindness.”

The company ed Jamison and offered to replace his car at no cost to him. He was given the new car at Richmond Hill Hyundai.

And to help Jamison along the way, dealership general manager Roger Linton gave the North York resident free oil changes for life.

“We wanted to make sure Todd had an extra special experience,” Linton said. “Now we can give him worry-free driving.”

“It’s great and the oil changes are a total surprise,” Jamison said with a smile.